Nairobi — The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has recovered grabbed public land within Machakos town valued at approximately 50 million Shillings.
The recovered properties, Machakos Municipality Block 1/623 and Machakos Municipality Block 1/624, are located along Kangundo Road and measure about 0.79 acres.
The parcels were illegally and irregularly allocated to private individuals in the early 1990s. Investigations by the Commission established that the two parcels were originally part of LR No. 909/536, measuring 1.78 acres, which had been reserved for the Ministry of Health for institutional housing.
The land hosts government House No. Mach/House/HG.14, classified as a "pool house," and currently accommodates the Sub-County Police Commander.
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Further investigations revealed that LR No. 909/536 was unlawfully subdivided into three parcels, Machakos Municipality Block 1/622, Block 1/623, and Block 1/624. While Blocks 1/623 and 1/624 were allocated to private developers, the section on which the government house stands remained under public use.
During the course of investigations, the registered owner of Machakos Municipality Block 1/624 voluntarily surrendered the land back to the Government.
In 2019, the Commission filed a suit for the recovery of Land Parcel Number Machakos Municipality Block 1/623 against Mr. Wilson Gacanja, the then Commissioner of Lands, and Mr. Joseph Mutuku Muia, son of former Masaku Town Council Mayor, Peter M. Ndunda.
In a judgment delivered on 16 January 2026, Environment and Land Court Judge Hon. Justice Nelly A. Matheka declared that Machakos Municipality Block 1/623 was originally part of LR No. 909/536, which had been reserved for public utility for government housing and was therefore not available for alienation.
The court ordered the cancellation of the title held by Joseph Mutuku Muia and directed that the land register be rectified to revert the property to the Government of Kenya.
In the last one year, the Commission has also recovered two other properties within Machakos County through Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR). They include Machakos Municipality Block 2/7, a Ministry of Housing parcel allocated to the Judiciary within Machakos town, and Machakos Municipality Block 2/936, which forms part of Machakos Primary School land.
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Addressing the media at the site of the recovered land, EACC Director, Legal Services and Asset Recovery David Too, noted that the Commission is currently pursuing the recovery of assets valued at approximately 363 million Shillings across Machakos, Kitui, and Makueni counties.
Among these are 13 parcels of Kenya Prisons land within Machakos County valued at about 60 million Shillings.
He reiterated the Commission's commitment to recovering illegally acquired public assets and urged individuals or entities in possession of such properties to voluntarily surrender them for their intended public use.
